“Produce My Son Dead or Alive”, Father Tackles Police Over Son’s 15-Month Disappearance
By 𝔸bdulrazak Tomiwa
Francis Azenabor, a 74-year-old retired technician, has spent the last 15 months searching for his son, Osas, who disappeared after being arrested by police in Ketu, Lagos.
Osas, a 40-year-old transporter and father of three, was reportedly picked up during a raid on November 1, 2024, and hasn’t been seen since.
The family’s nightmare began when Osas used a borrowed phone to call his wife, informing her he was at the Ketu Police Station. However, when she arrived shortly after, officers denied having him in custody, and his name was conspicuously absent from the station’s records and notice boards.
Determined to find his son, Azenabor tracked down an eyewitness who identified a specific police officer involved in the arrest. When the father confronted the officer at the Ketu station, the encounter turned hostile, with the officer reportedly arguing and refusing to provide any information.
The search led the elderly father to various police stations, the Task Force office in Oshodi, and even the Badagry Prison Yard, but all efforts yielded no results. Azenabor even resorted to pleading with officers on his knees, only to be pushed out of their office without answers.
Legal intervention by human rights lawyer Femi Falana, SAN, helped escalate the matter to the State CID and command headquarters. During questioning, a team leader admitted a raid took place but claimed the arrested individuals were released along the road a claim the family strongly disputes.
The disappearance has taken a heavy toll on the family, with Osas’s three children forced out of school due to lack of funds.
Azenabor expressed his desperation, stating that the constant “tossing around” by different police departments has left the family emotionally and financially drained.
In a plea for justice and closure, Azenabor demanded that the authorities account for his son’s whereabouts regardless of his condition. He stated, “We went to Falana, and he called the police, telling them they must produce my son dead or alive.”
